Afghan Provincial Governor Killed By Blast

PULE ALAM, Afghanistan -- The governor of Afghanistan's eastern Logar Province has been killed in a bomb blast.

Governor Arsala Jamal, 47, was killed while he was making a speech in a mosque to mark the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha on October 15 in the provincial capital, Pule Alam, which is some 60 kilometers southeast of Kabul.

The governor's spokesman, Deen Mohammad Darwish, said the blast was caused by a bomb placed in a microphone. Other reports say it was a suicide blast.

Jamal was reportedly a close confidante of President Hamid Karzai and had served as his campaign manager during the 2009 presidential election. He had survived a number of assassination attempts in the past.

No one has yet claimed responsibility for the attack, although Taliban militants routinely target Afghan officials, Afghan soldiers, and NATO troops.